


sunsets are the beginning

by fell_reincarnation



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Hinata Shouyou & Kageyama Tobio Friendship, Kozume Kenma & Kuroo Tetsurou Friendship, M/M, Oblivious Hinata Shouyou, POV Kozume Kenma, dear lord someone help them, help idk what im doing, kenhina - Freeform, kenma is a simp, kitty kenma, minor kuroyaku
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-30
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:01:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25616296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fell_reincarnation/pseuds/fell_reincarnation
Summary: kenma was taken aback as he stared in the mirror. he stared at a cat in the mirror instead of himself. with his paws, he cautiously felt his cat ears. kenma took a moment to stare at them while he moved them slowly.what the fuck was going on?[unregular updates]
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou & Kozume Kenma, Hinata Shouyou/Kozume Kenma, Minor Kuroo Tetsurou/Yaku Morisuke, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 46





	1. wishes

**Author's Note:**

> hmm ty for reading this!!! also no im not a furry

_kenma wasn’t the best at feelings._

it was something kuroo regularly pointed out to him. no matter how many times kenma would roll his eyes, kuroo kept poking him about it. kenma always dismissed the accusations, telling kuroo he hasn’t had a crush since middle school, so it was unfair of him to say such things.   
then came along hinata.

  
everyone noticed how much of a liking kenma took to hinata. during training camps, kenma would stare at hinata’s plays, even if he’s in the middle of a match. kenma would follow hinata around after practice was done for the day. he would stay up with hinata, even if he knew yaku would eventually find them both awake at one in the morning. kenma shared bits of his food to hinata. he would shift towards hinata if kenma caught him staring at the game he was playing to let him see the screen better. kenma would also practice with him after they played against other teams.   
it was an entirely new thing for nekoma- they had never seen kenma so happy around someone as energetic as hinata. even lev seemed to notice this.

  
“kenma-san, why do you stare so much at hinata-san?” lev had asked on the bus ride home. they had finished doing practice matches with karasuno, so now, they were on their way home.

  
“lev… i told you, you can just call me kenma,” said boy responded. he dodged the question that he had been asked all day by other team members.

  
“oh, okay!” lev answered, seemingly forgetting about his question towards kenma, because he starts to get comfortable for a nap.   
kenma sighs as he looks out the window. he could feel each bump on the road, which made him unable to take a nap, no matter how badly he wanted to. so he focused on the horizon, watching the sunset in the distance. the sky was a mix of oranges, pinks, and yellows. he liked the orange in the sky. It reminded him of hinata. it seemed like everything lately has been reminding him of the short decoy. he continues to stare at the sky all the way back to school, thinking about hinata.   
  
when they were back at school, the sky was dark, as the sun had gone to bed for the day. kenma was tired, evident by his sluggish movements. kuroo took note, so he handled both of their gym bags. he waited for kenma to walk home together, like always. after a while, they were both on their way home. kuroo had decided to pop a question, though.

  
“so, hinata-san caught your eyes, huh?” he remarked with a smirk.

  
“.. you’re mean…” kenma says, stuffing his hands into the jacket hinata had let him borrow until they met up again.

  
“uh huh. you’re wearing his jacket.” kuroo noted.

  
“shouyo’s just really nice. that’s all.” kenma looks down at his feet while he walked.

  
“ya sure?” kuroo asked, his smirk evolving into a softer smile. his tone became less playful, and more soft.

  
“yes, i’m sure.” kenma’s tone was the same- flat and defensive.

  
they walked home in silence. both boys were tired, and wanted to go to bed.   
  
at home, kenma greeted his mother, the only one still awake. she asked him how the practice matches were, and he responded a bit differently than usual.   
“i enjoyed it a lot,” kenma said, a very small smile on his face.

“wow, i’m so happy! did you get to eat?” his mother asked him, seemingly cooking some food.

  
“no…” kenma responded shyly. his hunger was really making itself clear by how his stomach rumbled.

  
“alright! i’m making some curry, just the way you like it” she smiles widely, even though her eyebags are prominent.

  
kenma nods, silently thanking her for the food. as soon as she’s done cooking, kenma gladly plates his food and says goodnight to his mother. he heads to his room with the hot food and a glass of water. kenma sits near his large window, admiring the night sky. he takes note of how the stars are glowing brighter than normal tonight. eating curry near his window was something he did on special nights.   
tonight was special indeed.   
he continued to eat, letting his thoughts occupy him. kenma began to think back on his plays and his matches. he was happy how much hinata had improved, even if kenma himself hadn’t improved as fast. there was something nagging at his mind, though. when hinata hugged kenma, kenma wanted to stay in his arms forever. or when hinata would text, kenma would smile and text back no matter what he was doing. kenma also loved listening to hinata talk for hours- even if it was for trivial things. he had the same bubbling feeling when he had a crush.

kenma knew it was something most guys didn’t experience. he knew most guys didn’t want to kiss other guys. he knew that well enough to understand that hinata was probably a guy who liked girls, and only girls. but that was fine. kenma just wondered if hinata _was_ one of ‘those’ guys. those who also liked guys. it was far fetched, but kenma had thought about it for a while.   
he sighed, finishing his plate of food. he took some sips of water, looking up at the sky. he opened the window, and stuck his head out. the wind was blowing fiercely, but kenma didn’t mind. he began to speak, seemingly to the stars themselves.

  
“i wish… i wish i could tell hinata i liked him… but… i don’t know how…”

  
it felt silly to kenma, wishing on the stars, but he was a bit desperate. talking about his feelings was awkward, even with kuroo. kenma simply tucked his head back inside, and closed the window softly. he set his plate in the kitchen, rinsing it off with water, and went back to his room. he placed the water on his bedside table, and tucked himself in.   
maybe these feelings would go away so he would never have to proclaim them.   
..   
sundays seemed too short for kenma’s liking.   
he wanted more time in the day to play games and watch tv, but sadly, that was not the case. he was swamped with homework, mostly from his science and math classes, and seemingly didn’t have enough time to finish it. kenma sighed, resting his head on his desk. he was upset, mostly because today he had made plans to see hinata. yet, much to kenma’s dismay, he had to cancel plans with him due to how much homework he had today. hinata was understanding, as always, and it made kenma feel a bit better knowing hinata was supportive about doing his homework. but still, he was frustrated that he couldn’t spend time with hinata today.

  
the hours wizzed by, as kenma got page after page after page of homework down. when he was finally done, the sun was setting. the boy groaned- being productive sucked. he shoved his homework into one big folder (which was falling apart), and scooted his desk chair to his window. with a big push, kenma opened his window, and gasped at the view (as if he hadn’t seen it a million times). the sunset was beautiful, as always. the oranges, the yellows, the pinks… they were just breathtaking. he hummed in content, watching the sun dip into the horizon. as the final rays of sunlight disappeared, stars started to appear in the now dark sky. kenma felt a bit better, as he always did when he watched the sunset. he foraged around his bed to find his small gaming console, ready to play games. yet, something was off. his usually small gaming console was now twice the size. what? this made zero sense to kenma. maybe it was his sleep deprivation catching up to him.

  
but when he reached out to the console, his hands were extraordinarily different. no, they weren’t even _hands_ anymore. they were _paws._ kenma was panicking- this was just his sleep deprivation. just his sleep deprivation. the boy’s heartrate picked up as he went to grab at his hair. kenma felt something else off. where were his ears? he began to breathe irregularly, scrambling to his large mirror. only now, he had to jump off his chair on all fours. holy fuck, holy fuck, stay calm, it’s okay’ he tried to reassure himself, but it wasn’t working as well as he hoped.   
kenma was taken aback as he stared in the mirror. he stared at a cat in the mirror instead of himself. with his paws, he cautiously felt his _cat_ ears. kenma took a moment to stare at them while he moved them slowly.

what the fuck was going on?

  
kenma was a _cat!!_ an actual cat! this wasn’t happening, this wasn’t happening. but it felt so _real_ to kenma. the way his ears moved, to his whiskers, to his paws, to the tip of his tail- he could feel it all. the boy admired his features, staring at his ginger and white pelt. he was some sort of tabby cat, as he could see strips of orange wrap around his limbs. but kenma’s ears were a dark brown, as well as his two from paws. his eyes were a striking hazel color, a bit lighter than his actual eye color. he walked around a bit, trying to calm down. kenma’s nerves felt like they were being shocked with electricity, which made him impulsive. should he run outside? his window was still open, and the wind was picking up again. with the chair right next to it, he could jump right outside. it would be distressing to have kenma’s mom find a cat instead of her son, so, maybe going outside was the best choice…   
  
so kenma jumped onto the chair, and then out the window, onto the roof below. 


	2. questions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM SO SORRY I POSTED THIS LATE,,, i have no excuse other than i fucking hate formatting to post.. so Yeah i probably wont fix the formatting here until i actually finish the fic  
> edit: I HAVE FIXED THE FORMATTING!!!!! its now easier to read :] as well, today's (8/14) update will not be posted :[ apologies!! ive been dealing with personal stuff!! but soon i will post some extra drabbles with kitty kenma on the side to make up for inconsistent updates <3

_kenma was never the best at endurance._

  
running at his top speed for long periods of time tired him out a lot. it was why he preferred being a setter to being a libero- liberos had to zoom around the court, trying to receive the ball perfectly. of course, kenma also had to run to get to the ball sometimes, but not much as say yaku would have to. yet, as a cat, he could run for so long without getting tired. his paws gingerly patted the sidewalk, as he zoomed into the night. he silently hoped that his parents had conked out on the couch early today, because they would be alarmed if he wasn’t home sleeping. but kenma couldn’t concentrate too much on that as he ran along the sidewalk. soon, he was outside of his neighborhood. he kept running, not sure where he was going. kenma remembered the park he and hinata were supposed to meet up at, and soon, his tiny cat body was running at full speed to go there. ‘maybe i’ll see hinata, maybe he’s there’ kenma thought.   
of course, it was unlikely. anyone with common sense wouldn’t be at a park miles away from their house, alone, waiting for someone who probably wouldn’t come anyways.

but that sounded exactly like hianta.

  
the boy ran for what seemed like an hour, but was only twenty minutes or so. the night sky had fully blossomed into a beautiful sight- the stars littering above, with the moon shining down on the streets of nerima city, made it all the better. too bad kenma didn’t have enough time to stare at the sky like most nights. he was almost at the park, evident by the sign at the entrance. he slowed down a bit, and was now walking. walking like a cat was strange. was his shitty job convincing enough? kenma didn’t know, he had never really been a cat before tonight. even so, it felt natural. the way his paws lifted up and then patted the sidewalk gently was lovely. the way his shoulder blades moved from side to side with each step. this was a dizzying experience, yet, it was… nice? kenma wasn’t sure how to word it.   
  
the boy sauntered around the park for a while, and finally saw the person he was looking for. his bright orange hair was hard to miss, even with minimal light. there was shouyou hinata, tossing a volleyball up in the air and then trying to receive it (keyword: trying). kenma saw the ball bonk hinata square on his forehead, which caused hinata to rub his forehead and hiss a bit. kenma slowly approached hinata, a bit scared that the ball would hit him. hinata seems to take note of the cat walking towards him, and smiles widely.

  
“hey kitty kitty!! are you lost?” hinata asked as if the cat could respond.

  
kenma walked towards hinata, his tail swishing in the air.

  
 _‘ it’s me, shouyou, it’s me, it’s kenma’_ he tried to say, but all he was doing was meowing back at him. hinata giggled, setting his volleyball down and extending his hand to kenma. kenma didn’t exactly know what to do, other than sniff his hand. he could smell the dirt from the park, smell the meatbuns he had eaten earlier, and he could even smell other people who had touched his hand. this was overwhelming to kenma, but he was seeing hinata, so it was worth it. hinata was still smiling as he picked kenma up, to which kenma allowed him to do so. he cuddled into hinata’s chest, purring loudly. his tail swished slowly, and it was obvious to anyone that this cat was enjoying itself with hinata- even hinata’s dense self could recognize how much this cat had taken a fondness to him.

  
“awww, you’re so cute!! here, let’s go back to my place! kenma isn’t coming tonight…”

  
the short boy sighed, but he picked himself right back up. with one hand, he carried kenma, and with the other, he carried his volleyball. he carefully set kenma down into the basket of his bike, and he balanced his volleyball in between his lap and the bike handlebar. kenma laid down in the woven basket, enjoying how it scratched a large area of his back. but soon, they were off, and kenma could feel wind riding through his short fur. he felt so _free_ , so _alive_ \- he felt like he could _fly_ .   
kenma meows loudly, and hinata giggled back at him as he pedaled to the closest train station.

  
..

  
in about three hours, hinata was finally home. sneaking a cat onto a train was difficult, but he managed. he entered his house, and noticed that natsu was sound asleep on the couch, while his mother was still awake.

  
“did you have a good time shouyo?” his mother asked, watching television with the volume low.

  
“yup! it was great! i got to practice too- nerima is soo different than miyagi!” hinata answered, hiding kenma in his sweater pocket. kenma tried his best not to move, out of fear that hinata’s mother would find him and throw him outside.

  
“you say that every time” she responded, chuckling a bit.   
“i know!” hinata chimed in as he went to his room.

  
“goodnight shouyo, sleep well” his mother softly said, and hinata said the same as he closed his bedroom door.

  
he let kenma jump out of his sweat pocket, and hinata let him explore his room. said room was fairly standard for a fifteen year old boy- there were posters for different movies and volleyball players hinata liked. there was an old desk near a large window, which had lots of books placed neatly (most likely the work of his mother). their broken spines were showing- they were certainly used over the years. there were writing utensils scattered on the desk, with empty homework pages next to them.   
‘hinata didn’t do homework to practice with me?’ kenma thought, a little touched by this small act. he stared at the desk for a while longer before examining hinata’s bed. it was soft and welcoming with its scent, a perfect fit for hinata. the short boy flopped onto the bed, evidently tired. it was a rare sight to see hinata tired, so kenma soaked in every detail he could see in the moment: the way hinata moved, to the way his smile curled up differently- even down to how he breathed.

hinata picked kenma up, and began to tuck them both into bed. the cat couldn’t stop thinking about how sweet and caring hinata was- but also a bit dumb. letting a supposed stray cat into your house and then letting it sleep with you was not much of a smart move: but kenma appreciated it nonetheless. curling up next to hinata’s chest was so lovely, too lovely to ever pass up. even if kenma was a cat. even if hinata would never know that it was kenma who he picked up and took home.

…   
kenma awoke a few hours later, all alone. he glanced at hinata’s clock, and saw that it was eight twenty five am. fuck, he was going to be super fucking late. he scrambled to get up, and noticed he was a human again. oh thank god, he was getting worried he would never turn back. kenma felt his hands, his legs, his arms- oh he was so glad to be back to normal. he also had the clothes he was wearing from yesterday which was handy. before anyone noticed he was here, kenma opened hinata’s window and jumped out. his heart was racing as his mind began to go into overdrive. did hinata see him as a human? when did he even turn back into a human? kenma quickly ran away from hinata’s house, not caring if he looked like an absolute fool. he went to the nearest train station, and groaned to himself. kenma knew he wasn’t thinking straight last night- he was three hours away from nerima, and would be very late. hopefully the school doesn’t call either of his parents that he’s late, or else he’d receive an earful about skipping.   
at least his parents left for work at around nine, so it would make sense to not see kenma in the morning. yet they would be concerned if they noticed that kenma didn’t take his bento or his bookbag. kenma anxiously entered the train station, glad he had his train card, and hurriedly boarded a train.   
  
another three hours later, kenma was running to his house. he was glad that the train station wasn’t too far from his home. quickly, he unlocked the front door, and grabbed what he needed for school. rushing to school, he looked like quite the fool. at the front gates, he was huffing and puffing quite badly. running as a cat was way easier, he noted. kenma signed his name, got a late pass, and walked to the current class he was supposed to be in. he took some time zoning out of class to regroup himself, and also wondered what last night was all about.

  
why did he turn into a cat?

kenma thinks back to the practice nekoma and karasuno had done on saturday. yes, that day was special, but he didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. soon, this was becoming like a math problem kenma hated. he tried to pay attention in class, but his focus kept wandering back to last night.

  
why did he turn into a cat?

  
trying to solve this problem was difficult for kenma. he was drawing a blank as he idly copied what his teacher had written on the board. what did he do differectly that caused this? or was this a sick and cruel joke that some god had played on him for their own amusement? kenma didn’t know and he couldn’t figure it out. he hoped that by tonight he could figure out why did he turn into a cat?   
he couldn’t get the question out of his head. the only time he was pulled from his swirling thoughts was when kuroo shook his shoulders at lunch.

  
“hey, earth to kozume! are you there??” kuroo loudly questioned kenma as he was staring into space. his yell made some students look at them- most of them confused second years who only knew kuroo as ‘the guy who takes care of kenma-san’.

  
“oh… sorry tetsurou…” kenma replies meakly. it was easy to tell he was exhausted, mostly by the way he slowly moved his arms to eat from his bento box.

  
“are you wiped out from practice?” kuroo asked, concern wrapping around his words. he massaged kenma’s shoulders, which made kenma feel like a baby, but he enjoyed it.

  
“yeah…” kenma managed to say, chewing his food slowly. he was exhausted, truly, but he was also happy. content, if you will. he had a faint smile on his face, remembering last night.

  
“yknow, you’re not gonna have enough time to eat all your food if you’re eating _that_ slowly,” kuroo remarked with a chuckle.

  
“you’re mean…” kenma responds, the smile still on his face. he didn’t have any answers just yet, but he was glad it happened either way. maybe it would happen tonight as well. the boy looked around to make sure no one was looking at him, and pulled out his phone. kuroo chuckled again, seeing that kenma was texting hinata. kuroo seemed like he wanted to ask kenma something, but he bit back his tongue.   
  
kodzuken;;   
> _shouyo, i saw an orange tabby in my neighborhood the other day._ _  
_ > _do you want to see it tonight?_ _  
_ read 12:46pm   
sunshineshouyo;;   
> _yes!!!!!!!_ _  
_ > _iwannaseekitty!!!!!!!!!!!! kittykiityyktyitytyitytytyi!!!!!!_ _  
_ > _i think i saw it last night in the park near ur house!!!!!!!! the kitty is soooo cute!!!!_ _  
_ > _r u going to see it with me???? can i bring kageyama??????_ _  
_ read 12:47pm   
kodzuken;;   
> _no, i’m still swamped with hw. and sure._ _  
_ read 12:48pm   
sunshinshouyo;;   
> _awwww no fair >:((( i wanna fight ur hw!!!! i wanna hang out with uuuuu _ ;^; _  
_ read 12:49pm   
kodzuken;;   
> _thank you, shouyo. i’m going to put my phone away now. goodbye._ _  
_ read 12:50pm   
  
kenma’s smile grew tenfold, sighing lovingly. kuroo also smiled, and patted kenma on the back.

  
..   
kenma was lying when he said he was swamped with homework- he had finished it the day before, which he was grateful for. eagerly, he awaited for the sun to set. the oranges, the yellows, the pinks (now with the addition of small clouds dotting the sky) was breathtaking as always. he opened his window, and placed his chair next to it. kenma quickly texted hinata, glancing at his phone and back at the open window.   
  
kodzuken;;   
> _i saw the cat in front of my house._   
read 7:58pm   
sunshineshouyo;;   
> _im almost there!!!!!! can i say hi to u tho :(?????_ _  
_ read 7:59pm   
kodzuken;;   
> _sorry, i can’t. i really need to get this done. last minute hw._ _  
_ read 8:00pm   
  
kenma felt like he was running a marathon while he typed the last text. as the sun set he anxiously awaited. would he turn into a cat again tonight? or was the last time a fever dream? kenma closed his eyes, trying to clear his head. when he opened then, he was low to the ground. hurriedly, kenma looked at himself in the mirror. he was a cat once again! with a content purr, kenma jumped up on his chair, and out the window. as fast as he could, he got down from the bottom roof, and eagerly looked for hinata. soon, he saw the short boy looking around in front of kenma’s house- as well as kageyama. they both seemed ansty- were they still looking for kenma? slowly, kenma walked from behind his mailbox, meowing to get hinata’s attention. he had almost forgot that kageyama was coming as well. the short boy noticed kenma, and gasped in amazement.

  
“kageyama!!! kageyama!!! look look!!! it’s the kitty i told you about!!!” hinata smiled widely, holding out his hands. kenma jumped into his arms, more than happy to receive hinata’s love and attention.

  
“do you wanna hold the kitty?” hinata asked as he cradled kenma in his arms. kenma could only focus on how hinata softly petted his thigh, or how he nuzzled his chin into kenma’s neck. kenma purred unconsciously- this was pure _heaven_ .

  
“u-uh… i don’t know how to hold a cat- besides! i don’t want to.” kageyama spat out, folding his arms and looking to his left. hinata giggled, holding out kenma to kageyama. it’s a shame how animals didn’t kageyama- and today was no different. the orange tabby hissed at kageyama, and hinata quickly retracted his arms, holding kenma close.

  
“heyhey!! why are you so fi-”

  
“animals don’t like me, okay?! jeez, that stupid fucking cat has to really rub it in…”

kageyama interrupted hinata, and blew some hair out of his face. they were quiet for a moment before kenma started to nuzzled into hinata’s neck. the short boy smiled, but he mostly ignored kenma. kenma tuned out to what hinata was saying for the most part- he was too focused on hinata’s hand petting the top of his head. whatever hinata had said had made kageyama more confident, and hinata slowly let kageyama hold kenma.

  
_‘if it makes hinata happy, i’ll do anything.’_

_  
_ ..   
at the end of the night, kenma was feeling content. even if kageyama wasn’t exactly the best petter, kenma still enjoyed the touch enough to play pretend. if it made hinata happy, he would pretend. hinata had kenma in his bike’s basket, letting him rest.

  
“oi, don’t you think the cat should go back to it’s owner?” kageyama asked to hinata.

  
“kenma said they don’t have an owner… but… i can’t take a cat in… my mom’s allergic…” hinata seemed upset by that fact, kenma could tell, but he kept a smile on his face.

  
“i’m not taking in an animal that hates my ass. let’s return it to where we found it.” kageyama responded, letting his arms swing by his side.

  
so this was it? kenma was a bit upset that hinata didn’t bring him back to his place, but he understood why. even if he didn’t like the reason, it would upset hinata if his mother began to feel under the weather around kenma. kenma let hinata scoop him up, and gently set him down near the mailbox.

  
“byebye kitty!!!” hinata cheerfully sended kenma off his way, petting the top of his head a few more times before kageyama had to drag him away. kenma stayed near the mailbox for a while- the night was peaceful. the cat laid on the grass for a while, before remembering he had to go to school in the morning. if kenma was a cat forever, he wouldn’t need to think about school- or even waking up for anything at all. that would be lovely.   
kenma climbs onto his window sil, and enters his room. he cuddles next to his pillow, dreaming of hinata.

  
 _‘being a cat forever sounds nice…’_


End file.
